Cherches-tu un poème qui ait des rimes parfaites ?

Questions & Answers about Cherches-tu un poème qui ait des rimes parfaites ?

Why is the subjunctive ait used here instead of the indicative a?
We use the subjunctive in a relative clause (starting with qui or que) when it describes something we are looking for, wishing for, or needing, but we aren't sure it actually exists. The speaker doesn't know if a poem with perfect rhymes is out there.
What would it mean if the sentence used the indicative qui a instead?
If you used qui a, it would mean the speaker knows that a specific poem with perfect rhymes already exists, and the person is just trying to locate it. The subjunctive ait keeps it hypothetical: you're looking for any poem that fits the bill.
Is the inversion in Cherches-tu common in everyday spoken French?
Not really. Subject-verb inversion like Cherches-tu is quite formal and typical of written French. In casual conversation, a French speaker would more likely say Tu cherches un poème... ? or Est-ce que tu cherches un poème... ?.
Why is it des rimes parfaites and not de rimes parfaites?
You might remember a rule about changing des to de when an adjective is involved. However, that only applies when the adjective comes before the noun (like in de belles rimes). Here, the adjective parfaites comes after the noun rimes, so the plural indefinite article des remains unchanged.

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